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Masterbatch & formulation IP
What it is
Masterbatch is concentrated colour or additive carried in a polymer base, dosed into a converter's material; engineered compounds and thermoplastic elastomers are formulated polymers with specified properties
Formulations are qualified into a customer's product and are hard to displace
Impact on industries
- Formulation intellectual property and customer qualification create genuine stickiness, unlike the commodity polymer the compound is built from
- Sustainable and recycled-content compounds are a growing specification requirement as EPR mandates escalate
- In-house compounding by large converters is a standing threat, since a customer with volume can bring the step inside
- The commodity end is fragmented and competes on conversion spread over base polymer, with little to defend
- Engineered compounds sit between chemicals and plastics, so the business is judged on formulation capability rather than tonnage